Finally, the time came to pack up all we'd
accumulated and leave our cosy cabana in El Ensueno. We
shoehorned everything into the boat and drove to Colonia where we
handed back our hire car. Down to just a cabin-sized wheelie bag
and backpack each we walked onto the afternoon ferry for Buenos
Aires, looking forward to an Argentine steak and wine supper.

The weather was fine and we had a lovely evening, getting up in
good time the following morning. From our hotel it was just a
short distance to the airport bus terminal so we decided to walk.
Big mistake. On a Saturday morning the streets are quiet and
there are baddies about. In just a few minutes our backpacks were
stolen. Dismayed, but relieved we still had passports and some
money, we tried to get a police report. The tourist police
decided we need to go to the Prefectura (port police), who
pondered for a bit then said we'd have to go to another police
station. As time was passing they agreed we could finish the
process later and we went to the airport and caught our flight to
Lima.

We'd lost all our printouts of boarding passes, tickets and
accommodation bookings (as well as cellphones, laptop, camera and
spectacles, etc) but
had no problems getting on to our flight when we explained what
had happened. Fortunately we remembered the address of
the apartment we'd booked for the first four nights in Lima and
were happy to find it, late at night and feeling exhausted.

Lima is a big city and first impressions are not great as the
drive into the centre goes through some rundown areas. The main
tourist accommodation area of Miraflores is a different matter -
modern and thriving, with a wide range of shops, cafes and
restaurants to suit all tastes and pockets.

The cliffs of Miraflores, looking south

. . . and north. That's our first sight of the Pacific
Ocean

Our first few days were spent cancelling lost plastic and SIM
cards, changing passwords and making sure we could get access to
cash and the info we'd lost. We made friends with our local cafe
owner who pointed us in the direction of Hiraoka, a store which
sells all manner of electronic stuff at reasonable prices. Our first purchases were a new
cellphone and tablet. Having felt naked without them we
were soon back in touch with the world and recovering our sense of
humour. One sticking point was our tickets for Machu Picchu which
we'd bought online after the (last-but-one) computer backup which
we had on a USB stick (the latest backup now entertaining a
thief!). We didn't have the reference number and couldn't get
through to the helpline. By this time there were no tickets left
for the dates we wanted. Our holiday would be ruined! Our cafe
friends came to our aid, ringing around to find another contact
number and we were able to recover our original booking.

By the time Helen and Lynda arrived - 4 days later - we were well
organised, having been able to replace most things and even
ordered up new spectacles for Rachel. We'd found the upmarket
LarcoMar shopping centre with it's numerous cafes and restaurants
where you can sit on the clifftops looking out over the Pacific
ocean. We've never seen the Pacific before so that was very
exciting. We'd also fallen in love with the Vivanda supermarket
with its amazing array of tropical fruits and vegetables, cheeses,
meats, wines, breads and more - far better than anything we'd seen
elsewhere in Latin America, even Sao Paulo.

The Larcomar shopping - and eating - centre

We moved into a penthouse apartment when H & L
arrived, a short distance from the LarcoMar centre. With three
bedrooms, a living room and kitchen it was large but it also had a
sun room, gym, jacuzzi and terrace upstairs! On our first day
together we took a taxi to the Museum of the Nation in the San
Luis district, hoping to get an overview of Peruvian history.
Unfortuately the main exhibition was closed for refurbishment but
we did see the Yuyanapaq (Quechua for 'to remember'), a harrowing
exhibition of photographs from Peru's Internal Conflict in the
late 20th century (remember the "Shining Path" guerillas?). It's
a stark reminder of how bad things were only a short while ago.

Well maintained timber balconies abound in central Lima

The historical centre of Lima

In need of a pick-me-up we took a taxi - distances are
large in sprawling Lima - to the historical centre where the
traffic was so bad that we got out and walked the last 500m to the
main square, admiring many post-colonial buildings along the way,
some undergoing refurbishment. The main square is pretty - even
under the cloud that prevails in Lima during the winter - with
many interesting buildings to visit. We opted for the nearby
House of Gastronomia with good displays of horticultural and
culinary developments over the ages and later the Monastery of San
Francisco which has a wonderful library and some very
claustrophobic catacombs filled with human bones stacked by type
rather than body.

Historical meaning mostly from the conquistadores in this
context

The governor wasn't short of a room!

At least they don't have to wear bearskins; but
they don't move either

Lima is renowned for it's cuisine and it was time to treat
ourselves at a nice restaurant. In the middle of Miraflores
there's an archaeological site called Huaca Pucllana, an adobe
(mud brick) temple dating back to 400 AD, which is overlooked by a
conviently-located restaurant serving Peruvian food, including
such delights as beef heart, guinea pig and alpaca. How nice to
be able to admire ancient culture while dining! Everything was
beautifully prepared and presented.

About 30 minutes' drive south of Lima is an archaeological site
called Pachacamac, another temple complex, this time dating back
to 100 AD. We wanted to see it but not on a tour so negotiated
with a taxi driver to take us there and back. When we arrived it
was obvious we needed a guide to show us around the large site but
we didn't have room in the taxi for an extra person. Solution?
Our driver was happy for one of us to drive his car around the
site while he waited at the entrance! It was an interesting site,
overlooking the (mostly arid) coastal plain. It is a reminder of
how old and diverse Peruvian history is. Although the Incas used
the site, it had been first developed over 1000 years earlier.

Our first Inca walls, at Pachacamac

Moistening the red murals, strictly in accordance
with UN guidelines

After a hard day's exploring we treated ourselves to supper at a
fish restaurant, enjoying some tasty ceviche, the famous
Peruvian marinated fish dish. We also began a holiday-long
attachment to the national drink, Pisco Sour. Pisco is a
grape-brandy and the "sour" bit is lime juice, whisked egg white
and a dash of this or that.

We had one more day in Lima before heading for the Andes so we
took a taxi to the Pueblo Libre district - a pleasant, residential
area home to the National Anthropology, Archaeology & History
museum in Plaza Simon Bolivar. We'd seen a few examples of
pottery at the small museum in Pachacamac but here we began to
realise how vast a collection of fascinating pottery and textiles
has been uncovered in Peru, not just from the Inca era but also
representing much earlier cultures, such as from Pucaras where
crouched mummies were wrapped up in multiple and colourful shrouds
before being placed in caves.

Don't foul the pavements outside this museum - 380 Soles is
about $100

In need of refreshment we ventured into a nearby establishment
only to find it was a brewery, so we had a degustation of 6 tasty
beers, accompanied by a plate of causitas, little mounds
of potato puree stuffed with different flavours such as crab,
chicken, onions, etc.

The fabulous four explore! - after breakfast on the cliffs -
us with Helen, Paul's niece, and cousin Lynda

Having prepared ourselves as best we could it was time to head
inland and uphill ...